Charity signs Enforceable Undertaking after self-reporting the underpayments
A South Australian charity has signed an Enforceable Undertaking (EU) with the Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) after underpaying 80 employees more than $76,000 over a five-year period.
Townsend House Inc, part of the Can:Do Group and based in Adelaide, self-reported the underpayments in April 2023.
The charity acknowledged that employees were not correctly paid their base and overtime rates under enterprise agreements between September 2017 and October 2022.
According to the FWO, the charity cited a combination of payroll system errors and a misunderstanding around the calculation of additional hours worked as the cause of the breaches.
The FWO investigation also revealed that Townsend House had failed to comply with a previous undertaking it gave in 2018 to the Fair Work Commission — separate from the Ombudsman - regarding overtime payments for part-time workers.
The affected employees, based in Hindmarsh and Noarlunga, included part-time and full-time staff such as administrative and clerical personnel, social and community services workers, interpreters, and clinical and audiology professionals.
They have now been back-paid a total of $76,804, including nearly $11,000 in interest and about $1,500 in superannuation.
Payments to individual employees ranged from $23 to over $7,700, with an average underpayment of $960.
Fair Work Ombudsman Anna Booth said the charity had shown a willingness to comply with its obligations following the investigation.
"Hard-working employees must not be underpaid, and undertakings given to the Fair Work Commission must not be breached," Booth said in a statement.
"In this matter, we welcome Townsend House's cooperation with our investigation, the new management team's commitment to rectifying the underpayments, and the measures they have and will put in place to ensure current and future employees are paid everything they are owed."
As part of the EU, Townsend House must undertake several measures to improve compliance, according to the FWO.
These include mandatory training for relevant staff on workplace relations and the Fair Work Act's National Employment Standards, commissioning an independent audit of its employment practices, and providing forums for employees that can include union representation.
The FWO stated that the charity has already implemented several reforms, including a new payroll system, outsourcing payroll functions, updating its governance structure and constitution, and establishing employee-management forums for workplace issues.
"Employers must prioritise workplace compliance and ensure all their systems and processes align with the legal requirements of their own enterprise agreements, as well as any relevant awards and undertakings," Booth said.
